KERRVILLE, Texas – The Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country has spent $82 million on recovery as a part of the Kerr County Flood Relief Fund established July 4, 2025 — the day of historic flooding in the Hill Country.
The figure includes mental health, economic recovery and environmental restoration, but the largest chunk and top priority has been for housing.
Forty-three percent of that total has been spent getting people into temporary and, eventually, permanent housing. One of the recipients of the funding is flood survivor Wilbur Vance.
“I got up about 7:30 (a.m. on July 4, 2025) to make coffee, and I looked out the back of the window and the water was coming fast and got up to eight foot (feet) — where my garage was,” Vance said. “And we got about 30 inches inside the house.”
Firefighters soon evacuated Vance, who escaped the flood unharmed. However, his Center Point home of nine years was largely decimated.
“We had a lot of volunteers that cleaned it out, you know, and just stripped all the drywalls where you could see where the mold damage was,” Vance said. “Quite a few people there.”
Under the direction of the foundation, Habitat for Humanity rebuilt his home.
After months of bouncing around temporary housing, Vance has finally moved back in. His temporary homes were covered by a group of nonprofits.
Vance represents one of 130 families that the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country has permanently re-housed since July 4, 2025.
Ninety-eight families have almost received permanent housing, and 180 more are currently in temporary housing — all fully covered by the foundation. For reference, those 180 households are made up of approximately 400 people.
“Housing has been our single largest investment because housing is the foundation upon which every other aspect of recovery depends,” Community Foundation of Texas Hill Country CEO Austin Dickson said.
“Those solutions have included home repairs, rebuilding programs, temporary housing assistance, RV replacement, mobile home replacement and down payment assistance,” said David Long with the Texas State Affordable Housing Commission.
KSAT was given a tour of a brand-new neighborhood in Kerrville called The Mariposa Community. Ten new houses were built for flood survivors, who are almost ready for move-in.
Vance is excited for those families to return to a sense of normalcy similar to him.
“At the moment, you don’t realize how traumatized you are,” Vance said. “And it’s kind of like a delayed stress that kicks in.”
Vance also said he is grateful for all the nonprofits, case workers and volunteers who have helped bring that stress down for him and many others — especially as they approach the one-year mark since the tragedy.
The foundation’s 32 case workers have worked daily with families to make sure they have what they need.
During Tuesday’s news conference, Dickson said more work lies ahead.
The foundation has pledged $50 million for housing and have used $35 million of it. The remaining $15 million is committed to flood survivors who don’t yet have permanent housing.
More information on the Community Foundation’s spending can be found here.
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